The fibre optic communications industry currently uses a number of different optical fibre connector types. The connectors are used to interconnect and disconnect, optical fibres used for light transmission. To provide a satisfactory connection requires optical connectors to be high precision mechanical devices, with tolerances on certain parts being in the order of 1 micron. The connectors are difficult to produce and many years of engineering effort have been required to perfect and develop the various types of connectors, most of which need to be manufactured in large quantities. The different types of connectors are essentially all incompatible, and as the industry evolves, new types are being developed with improved characteristics. Despite the variety of types of connectors which are available, there is a lack of user installable and inexpensive components for adapting between connector types. A number of adaptors for connecting different types of connectors are available but tend to be severely limited in application, either due to excessive cost or limited performance. Some adaptors are used in insets or equipment, but are incorporated into instruments, so an instrument can only be used to connect to one type of connector. The user purchasing the instrument therefore can only make use of it with one type of optical connector.